Chapter 1 - The Beginning Leg to Bellingham and Los Angeles

The trip that Rosemary has been looking forward to for so long is finally happening tomorrow! She didn't want to get too excited since they've had to postpone their trip on more than one occasion. On top of that, they will now be stopping in Bellingham to see Susannah and her family. Both Lee and Rosemary are excited to visit his sister and meet his niece and nephew for the first time. They stay up late packing and talking about their upcoming adventures. Well, Rosemary did the talking, and Lee listens intently to every word she says.

She puts one last item into her trunk and sits on the edge of their bed. "Lee, what time is Lucas picking us up in the morning?"

He sits down next her with a grunt, "Lucas should be here around 10 am."

"Oh Lee, I cannot believe this is finally happening!"

"I know sweetheart," Lee replies with a look in his eye that tells her everything works out with His perfect timing.

The next morning, Lee and Rosemary finish packing everything up and getting the house in order. Lee loves hearing her sing as she happily works. He couldn't help but stand there smiling and admiring her. She looks over at him, catching him off guard, and chuckles, "Do you want to go over and say goodbye to Elizabeth and little Jack with me?"

He clears his throat, "Of course I do. Let's go."

As they walk out their front door, they are surprised to see most of the town standing in front of Elizabeth's house. Rosemary heartily laughs. "What in the world are you all doing here?"

Elizabeth steps in front of everyone, "I want you two to have a little send off before you left. You are going to be gone a long time. We are going to miss you."

Rosemary gives a big hug to Elizabeth, "I am going to miss you and little Jack too." She takes little Jack and gives him one last hug and a kiss and then hands him over to Lee who does the same.

After saying their goodbyes to everyone, they get in the car and Lucas drives them to the train station. They arrive about thirty minutes before their train leaves. They get out of the car, and Lucas helps Lee unload all of the luggage. Lee pats him on the back and thanks him for driving them there.

Lucas shakes his hand. "No problem. Have fun on your trip."

They board their train to Bellingham with so much excitement. Rosemary cannot contain her happiness; it was written all over her face. Lee points for her to go sit down in their seats, and he puts their luggage in its proper place. He joins her as she is looking out the window giddily. "Here we go, Rosie! See I told you that we would go on our trip."

"Yes you did, Lee!" Rosemary replies with a sarcastic grin on her face.

They arrive in Bellingham the next day. Susannah, her husband Jake, and her kids meet them as they are getting off of the train. Susannah gives Lee a big hug and then Rosemary. "I would like to introduce you both to my family. This is my husband, Jake, my son Patrick, and my daughter Catherine. Welcome to Bellingham. I hope the train ride was pleasant for you two."

Jake, a tall, rugged, athletic man with brown hair and brown eyes, shakes his hand and gives Lee a hug, "It is nice to see you again after all of these years. Susannah has been so happy since she came back from your visit. She couldn't stop talking about Hope Valley and of you and Rosemary." He then gives Rosemary a hug, "It is a pleasure to meet you. Susannah told me what you said to her back in Hope Valley and I am so thankful for you."

Rosemary smiles fully, "It was the least I could do. I know how much it meant for Lee to reconnect with his sister after such a long time. I'm just so glad we are in contact now. Hopefully we can all see each other often."

Lee walks up to Patrick, a tall, thin, athletic young man with brown hair and blue eyes, and gives him a hug, "Patrick, it is so nice to meet you. You know you were named after your uncle, right? He was a good kid and we still miss him greatly. I hope you know how special he was to your mother and I."

"Don't worry, Uncle Lee, mother talks about him all the time. I wish I could have known him."

"I wish that too, Patrick."

Standing next to Susannah was Catherine, a shy, blue eyed, blonde hair, young woman, looking down and fiddling her thumbs. Sensing her shyness, Lee walks up to her and gives her a warm hug wanting to make her feel at ease, "You look just like your mother when she was your age."

Catherine looks over at her mother and father, "That is what my father says all the time."

Rosemary follows and gives both Patrick and Catherine a hug. "It is so nice to meet you both. You have such a wonderful family!"

Jake clears his throat to try to get everyone's attention, "We better get back to the house. I'm sure you are ready to freshen up and relax after your long train ride. We only live about twenty minutes from here."

The six of them go back to Jake and Susannah's house where Susannah gives Lee and Rosemary a tour and shows them where they will be staying. "I hope this room is okay with you. We haven't had many guests stay with us since we moved in."

Rosemary puts her things down on the chair and takes off her coat. "Susannah, you have a wonderful home here. This room is just perfect for us, isn't it honey?"

Lee smiles in agreement, "Did Jake build this home?"

Susannah proudly answers, "Yes, he did about 5 years ago." She starts to leave the room and turns to say, "I am going to start on dinner if you two want to freshen up. It should be ready in about an hour."

After putting their things away and changing into something fresh, Lee and Rosemary head downstairs to the wonderful aroma of dinner. As they walk into the kitchen, Lee's attention is captured by how much Susannah reminds him of their mother. Her mannerisms as well as how she sets the table with perfectly folded napkins. He is brought back to the times where he and Susannah would come running into the house for dinner. They would immediately grab the two clues their mother would leave for them. They would have to put the clues together in order to find their prize hiding somewhere in the house. The two of them would run upstairs to their room and try to figure out where the clues were leading them. They would sometimes compete against each other, and whoever figures out the clue first would get the whole prize. The prize usually consists of two coins or two books they could share or divide amongst themselves. The books were almost always shared between them no matter who won. However, if the prize was coins, Lee would always put his directly in his piggybank while Susannah would spend her coins as soon as possible. By the time they would find their prize, their mother would usually be calling them down for dinner.

Susannah sees him smiling to himself and asks, "What is making you smile?"

"Oh, I am just reminded of the good times we had with the clues mother would leave us." He walks up to the stove and asks, "Sis, what smells so good?"

"Chicken and Dumplings! Wasn't that one of your favorites growing up?"

A big grin appears on his face, "Susannah, I cannot believe you remembered that after all of these years!"

They all sit down together to eat for the first time as a family. The kids start talking about their friends and what they are doing in school. Jake and Susannah talk about their day. The customers that came into the store and what types of orders they made. Susannah fondly talks about this man, named Grover, who came in this afternoon, "He was hoping to put in a rush order for a cradle. He and his wife got the surprise of a lifetime with twins. They had only purchased one cradle; they quickly needed a second one. Fortunately, there was one in the back that Jake had just finished making. The man was so overcome with joy that he almost left it there. He comes running back in and apologizes for his absent mindedness."

Grover laughs and says, "Two newborn babies plus three other children under ten years old will do that to you."

"I can only imagine," Susannah quietly says as he is walking out the door. She looks over at Jake and her two children, "Those are the moments that remind us why we work hard and make sacrifices."

Lee takes Rosemary's hand under the table, after he sees the sad look she gets when she is thinking about them not being able to have children. She brings his hand closer and gives it a squeeze!"

After dinner, the guys excuse themselves to the parlor and start talking about baseball and hockey. The girls clean up the table and wash the dishes. When they are done, Susannah gets out the kettle so she can make some tea. "We can stay in here and visit unless you want to hear the guys talk about sports for hours."

"They will talk about that stuff for hours if you let them," Catherine adds. She takes the teacups and saucers out of the cabinet and places them on the table. "Aunt Rosemary, I hear you are a fashion designer. Can you show me some of your designs? Maybe you can show mother how to make some new blouses and skirts."

Rosemary jumps up excitedly, "Let me go get my sketchbook!" She runs upstairs to her room and grabs her new sketchbook she bought specifically for this trip and runs back to the table and sits down next to Catherine. She shows off some of her latest designs that she has been sketching. "I have not made the patterns for these yet. They are just some I came up with on our train ride here."

Susannah pours tea for the three of them while looking at the designs, "These look so beautiful, Rosemary! You are so talented."

"Mother, can you make any of these?" Catherine points to a couple of the designs. "I love this skirt, and this skirt over here, and of course this blouse."

Rosemary happily offers to Susannah, "I can make you a pattern for any that she likes."

"I cannot ask you to spend so much time on making patterns for us. This is your vacation, and you are not here for very long."

Rosemary responds, "You didn't ask. I offered. Don't worry, it doesn't take long at all. Plus, you are family."

"Thank you so much!" Susannah and Catherine reply.

"It is my absolute pleasure." She takes a sip of her tea. "So, Catherine, are there any boys that you like?"

Catherine blushes, "Yes, but he and his family recently moved down to Seattle. He has written me a letter, though."

Rosemary claps her hands in delight, "What did he say? What did you write back?"

Catherine looks down in embarrassment, "I don't know what to write. He just writes about his new house and school. He couldn't get over how much bigger Seattle was to Bellingham. He also writes about some friends he's made, but that he misses Bellingham and he misses m..me."

Rosemary's face lights up, "Ooh ooh Ooh! That is wonderful. Is he your boyfriend?"

Catherine looks over at her mother not knowing what her reaction will be. "No, we have just been good friends this past year. The last time I saw him though, I had a feeling he wanted to tell me something, but he could never get it out. I didn't realize how much he meant to me or how much I would miss him until he moved away. I guess he felt the same way. What do I say back to him?"

"Just be yourself and tell him what is going on in your life and at school. He probably wants to just know what he has been missing since he left. If you do indeed miss him and you want him to know, then just be honest and tell him. It is not like you are saying you like him or anything like that."

"Thanks, Aunt Rosemary! Mother, what do you think? Are you okay if this relationship goes further?"

"I agree with Aunt Rosemary on what to write back. Aren't you getting a little ahead of yourself? You don't really know what he is thinking at this point. In the future though, if you think it is heading to something more serious, I would hope that he would be talking to your father before pursuing anything with you. In the meantime, I think it is time for bed. Let's go tell your father, brother, and uncle good night. Sorry Rosemary, I hope you don't mind. We are used to turning in pretty early here. You can stay up with the guys if you are not ready."

"I'm pretty exhausted from our train ride. I will probably call it a night as well."

The three of them quietly walk into the parlor. The guys are so into their conversation on whether the American or National League was better, they did not notice the ladies coming into the room. Patrick is the first to look over and see them standing there laughing. "What is so funny, mother? How long have you been standing there?"

Lee and Jake finally notice their wives standing there with smirks on their faces. Susannah comes over and sits next to Patrick, "We were wondering how long it would take before you saw us." The three guys look at each other and apologize.

Susannah chuckles and sarcastically adds, "We didn't want to interrupt your very important conversation. I guess I don't have to ask how things are going. You all seem to be having fun. We would like to say goodnight and don't stay up too late.

Jake gives Catherine and Susannah a hug and says, "Goodnight."

Lee motions for Rosemary to join him on the couch. She sits down next to him for a few minutes listening to the guys. "I'm tired, Lee. I am going to call it a night." He gives her a kiss on the cheek and tells her he will join her in a little bit.

The guys continue their conversation about which league is better. Jake thinks the National League is better while Lee and Patrick think the American League is by far superior. About a half hour later, Lee gets up off the couch and scratches his head, "I don't think we will ever agree on this, so let's just agree to disagree." Patrick and Jake nod in agreement. "I think I am going to call it a night. It has been fun getting to know you both. I am so glad that my sister has such a wonderful family. Goodnight."

Jake and Patrick get up as well and head upstairs. They both say, "Goodnight," and head to their rooms.

The next morning, everyone wakes up early as usual. Susannah gets down to the kitchen first to cook breakfast. She wants to make Patrick's favorite meal, pancakes and bacon, since he was heading back to college later that morning. She puts a double helping of pancakes and bacon on his plate next to the bottle of warm maple syrup. Ever since he was a small child, he would insist on drowning the pancakes in warm syrup. Next, she fills up his glass with cold milk and prepares for everyone to come downstairs to join her. The six of them sit down to have one last meal before Patrick has to leave. He is excited to get back to school because he has a baseball game coming up and a camping trip with his buddies. He ensures his mother he will be careful and he won't do anything foolish. He kindly reminds her that he will be home for the summer in a month and a half.

"I know, Patrick. I know you are a responsible young man now in college, but your father and I still worry about you all the time." Susannah and Rosemary clear the table and do the dishes. "What time do you need to be at the train station, honey?"

Patrick goes to grab his ticket to look at the time, "The train leaves at noon."

They all go sit in the parlor until it is time to take Patrick to the train station. Lee and Susannah start reminiscing about their childhood. They both agree it was a great place to grow up. It was a small town where everyone knew everyone, and all the neighborhood kids would meet at the park to play. Lee chuckles to himself as he is remembering the good times, "Some of our favorite games to play were tag, leapfrog, or hopscotch. The girls, except for Susannah, would prefer to play hopscotch while the rest of us kids would usually play tag." He looks over to Patrick and Catherine, "Your mother was not like most girls. She would rather play with the boys than the girls any day."

Both Patrick and Catherine look at her in shock. "Really, mother? I cannot imagine you playing with the boys," Catherine replies with a look of doubt on her face.

"Well, I grew up with two brothers…well one brother," Susannah answers with sadness in her voice. "It is was easier to tag along with Lee and play the games he would want to play."

Lee asks Jake, "When did you move to Ohio? I cannot remember how you met Susannah."

"I believe my family and I moved to Goshen a couple of years before your mother passed away. I met Susannah at a community fair about a year later. She was with her friends, and I had come with my brothers. She was the most beautiful girl that I had ever seen. We started off as friends, and then, it turned to romance. We courted for about a year, and then, after your father passed away, we got married and moved back to the Washington area."

Susannah blushes and mumbles, "How did we get on that topic? Oh, look at the time, we need to leave for the train station in 10 minutes. Will everyone be ready to go?" Everyone gathers their things and they pile into the car again and head to the train station.

Patrick says his goodbyes and gives everyone a hug. As he is walking to the train, Lee comes up to him and pats him on the back, "Patrick it was so nice meeting you. I want you to know that if you ever need anything, please don't hesitate to call, wire, or write to me and your Aunt Rosemary. Don't be a stranger, and good luck with the rest of the school year."

"Thank you. That means a lot." Patrick turns around and waves to everyone and boards his train.

The five of them get back in the car. Jake turns around to ask, "What would you like to do today? We can take you to the Pacific American Fisheries to see the big boats they are building, or we can go to Whatcom Falls Park."

Lee looks over at Rosemary, and she nods. "Why don't we go see Whatcom Falls Park and then you show us your furniture store." Jake and Susannah agree and they head out to the park. They drive up, park their car, and get out and walk.

Catherine catches up to Aunt Rosemary and Uncle Lee, "Aunt Rosemary, the waterfall you will see is so beautiful along the creek. You won't want to leave."

Rosemary thinks to herself that it cannot be prettier than the pond and mountains surrounding Hope Valley that she has come to know and love. The backdrop of the mountains behind the row houses, the reflection of the church/schoolhouse in the pond, the fresh mountain air, and the forest off in the distance. "I can't wait to see. I am sure that it is as beautiful as you say."

They make their way to the waterfall and Catherine was right. It was beautiful. Jake, Susannah, and Catherine take one bench, and Lee and Rosemary take the other. They all just sit there and admire the beautiful view. Lee puts his arm around Rosemary, and she rests her head on his shoulder. After about a half hour, Catherine goes up to them and asks, "Do you want to go to the lake and then back to the furniture store?" Rosemary lifts her head and they both say, "Yes."

They get back in the car and head to the lake. Lee and Rosemary cannot believe how big it is. Jake tells everyone they can get out and walk part of it or they can just drive around and look at the scenery. Rosemary excitedly says, "Let's go walk around the lake for a little while." Everyone agrees and they park and get out of the car. Catherine leads the way down to the lake to show everyone the trail most people use. Rosemary takes Lee's hand and they follow Catherine down the trail. Jake and Susannah follow close behind smiling at her little brother and his wife. Catherine leads them to the end of the main trail and tells them the rest of the trail is pretty rough and muddy, so they decide to turn around. Lee and Rosemary take their time on the walk back to the car. They want to savor the beauty surrounding them. Everyone makes it back to the car and they head to the furniture store. Jake offers to drop Catherine off at home before going to the store. She happily takes up her father on that generous offer. They drop her off at home, and Jake and Susannah give Lee and Rosemary a tour of their store. Jake proudly shows off some of their unique pieces of furniture they have created while Susannah shows some of the displays that she designed. She figures Rosemary would enjoy seeing how different furniture layouts could work. Both Lee and Rosemary are impressed with what they had done with their store. Lee shakes Jake's hand and gives his sister a hug. "This is a great store. Your furniture is so unique and well made. Mother and Father would be proud of you, sis. I am proud of the two of you and so impressed with what you have accomplished on your own." Rosemary agrees.

Susannah walks over to Jake and takes his arm. "Thanks, Leland. Thanks, Rosemary. Why don't we go back to the house? I'll fix a late lunch while you all relax."

They get back to house and Susannah starts to make their lunch. "Do ham sandwiches sound good to everyone? I figure we could have a light lunch and then I'll cook a nice dinner.

"That sounds great, honey," answers Jake.

Catherine starts to run upstairs. Rosemary follows her and asks, "Do you want me to show you how to make some of the patterns you like?"

"I would love that!"

Continuing up the stairs, Rosemary says, "Perfect. Why don't we start after lunch?"

They all sit down to eat their lunch together. Instead of sports, now they are talking about furniture. Lee is asking lots of questions to Jake about the processes he has to go through to make some of the pieces of furniture he saw in the store. Jake is more than happy to go through all the details even though he knows Lee is the only one listening. Susannah and Catherine are used to his boring furniture talk, but they pretend to listen. Rosemary, on the other hand, is trying her best not to doze off from boredom.

They finish their quick lunch. Susannah and Rosemary start doing the dishes while Jake and Lee head to the parlor. As they are finishing up, Rosemary asks, "Do you have some paper, scissors, a tape measure, pins, sewing machine, and some fabric we could use for Catherine's skirt? I am going to show her how to make some patterns. Do want to join us as well?" Susannah nods and gathers all of the materials and puts them on the kitchen table. Rosemary shows both of them how to come up with the measurements for different sizes and how to draw them out on paper and cut them appropriately. "Why don't we draw this one out in your size, Catherine, and pin it to this fabric and even sew it if you would like."

"Thank you, Aunt Rosemary!"

"We better start then."

Rosemary takes Catherine's measurements for both skirts and blouses just so they would have those numbers going forward. She shows her how to convert those measurements for the pattern. Next, she draws the skirt onto the paper and cuts it out. Catherine watches closely as the pattern starts to come together; the excitement building on her face. Rosemary points to the pattern, "See how easy that was? It didn't take that long at all. Now let's pin it to the fabric and start sewing. Who wants to do the honors?"

Just then, Lee and Jake walk into the kitchen to see what the ladies were doing. Lee quietly tells Jake, leave it to my wife to start working on a project. He walks up to her and rubs her shoulders. "What are working on, Rosie?"

She looks up at Lee and softly says, "Thank you. I was just showing Susannah and Catherine how to create a pattern from scratch, and now we will sew this skirt for Catherine."

"That's great, sweetheart. Is this one of the ones you were sketching on the train?"

Excited over learning from her aunt, Catherine pipes in, "Yes, it is, Uncle Lee. Aunt Rosemary, I would like to try and sew the skirt. Would that be ok?"

"Of course, it is. We will make an expert seamstress out of you, if you aren't already."

The guys retreat back to the parlor while Susannah looks at the clock and realizes she needs to start on dinner. "You two finish up this skirt, and I will get supper ready."

"Thanks, Susannah. We should hopefully finish by the time you are done cooking. If not, we can finish up after dinner." Rosemary happily watches Catherine sew the different pieces of the skirt. "Now this is the hard part. Putting the seams together and having them stay straight while sewing. Do you think you can do it?" Catherine nods and slowly starts to sew the front and back pieces together. Rosemary closely watches her to make sure everything is lined up properly. Catherine finishes and proudly holds up the skirt. Rosemary claps her hands, "Good job. It looks perfect!"

Susannah comes over and admires the skirt that her daughter just sewed. "That looks great, Catherine. Go try it on." Catherine runs up the stairs and puts on her new skirt and runs down to model for her mother and aunt.

"Aunt Rosemary, it is perfect. I love it! Thank you so much for showing me how to create a pattern from scratch and make something out of nothing."

"You were an easy student." She puts her hand on Catherine's arm. "I just want to say thank you for being so welcoming to me. I don't have any siblings of my own so I have never had any nieces or nephews. This has been a real treat for me. The same goes for you, Susannah. I have never had the pleasure of having a sister." Susannah, Catherine, and Rosemary come in for a group hug with tears forming in all of their eyes. As they are pulling a part, Jake and Lee come back in and see the group hug. The girls get embarrassed so Susannah goes back to the kitchen to look at the food, and Catherine and Rosemary clean everything up so they can use the table for dinner. The guys look at each other trying to figure out what is going on. Jake walks up to Susannah in the kitchen to see when the food would be ready while Lee comes over to help Rosemary move the sewing machine.

Catherine offers to set the table after she changes out of her new skirt. "Uncle Lee? Father? Do you like my new skirt?" They both smile and say, "Yes."

Jake adds, "You three did a wonderful job."

Rosemary runs up to their room, and Lee follows her. "Are you ok, Rosie?"

She smiles and laughs, "Yes, Lee I am fine. I just came up to put my sketchbook away." She looks at her hands and realizes she left it downstairs. Lee gives her the look of doubt. "It's nothing. It was just nice to be a part of a family and to be able to do things with a sister and niece. I have never had that before. Until today, Elizabeth and little Jack has been the closest I've gotten to feeling like I belong to a family, other than you."

He motions her over to him and gives her a hug. "I know what you mean, sweetheart. It has been great getting to know all of them. It does truly feel like a family here. We will have that some day. You will see."

"Dinner is ready," exclaims Susannah! They all sit down at the kitchen table and enjoy their supper and the lively conversation.

Catherine asks, "Uncle Lee and Aunt Rosemary, can I ask you some questions?"

They both smile and acknowledge Catherine. Lee wonders to himself, "Oh boy, what is she going to ask?" He looks to Rosemary, letting her know that she should be answering the questions.

She rolls her eyes at Lee before looking back at Catherine. "Of course. What would you like to know?"

"How did you two meet?"

Rosemary begins, "Well, your Uncle Lee came riding into town on a motorcycle one day and stole my heart! I was scared at first that I would mess something up with him, but I quickly realized I couldn't live without him. We have pretty much been together ever since. I had never met anyone like him before. He challenged me. He made me want to be a better person. He was the first man that I knew who was not afraid to tell me I was wrong about something. He made me feel loved just the way I was. I never had to change for him."

"I knew I wanted to marry her the moment I saw her and she spoke her first words to me 'Well I've never seen a vehicle like this one!' She tried to be more interested in the motorcycle, but I could tell she was immediately intrigued with me."

"We knew each other a little over a year before we got engaged, and then, we got married pretty quickly. I couldn't be happier. Marrying him has been the best decision I have ever made!"

Lee takes her hand gently and kisses her knuckles, "It has been the happiest four years of my life!"

Susannah, Catherine, and Rosemary all say, "Awe!"

"My next question is how did you both end up in Hope Valley?"

"Well, I originally grew up in Canada. My father was a Mountie, and my mother was a stage actress. My dream was to be on Broadway, so I moved to New York City to try to make a name for myself. I was pretty successful, but I just wasn't happy. I actually had followed my ex-fiancé to Coal Valley, the name of the town before it became Hope Valley, to try and rekindle our relationship. I met Lee shortly after coming there, and my life changed for the better!"

Lee clears his throat, "My life is a lot less glamorous. I just happen to be reading the paper one day and saw an article about the mining accident and subsequent trial. Depending on the outcome of the trial, I thought Coal Valley would be a great place to open up a Sawmill. I got on my motorcycle and rode into town. Rosemary was the first person I talked to, and the rest is history!"

"My last question will be what was it like to live in New York City? Were you in lots of plays?"

Lee chuckles because he knows this can be a very long answer. Rosemary loves to talk about anything, but especially her time in New York City. He can see the excitement building up in her face. She pauses to check herself before she speaks, "Well, I can go on and on about this Catherine, just ask your Uncle Lee. I will tell you a little bit about my time now and then I can tell you more in letters or when we see each other again. How about that?" Catherine nods. "Living in New York City was a dream come true at the time. I was getting most of the parts I was auditioning for, plus I was teaching music to children in my spare time. I met lots of interesting people on and off the stage, some of which are still my friends today. Acting was my creative outlet, and I enjoyed every minute of the spotlight. My broadway debut was the lead in The Hairdresser. I played Major Barbara in Major Barbara. Major Barbara was a play written by George Bernard Shaw. It was about an idealistic young woman, Barbara, who loved to help the poor as a major in the Salvation Army in London. I also played Joan of Arc in Joan of Arc as well as Princess Marie in The Pride of Jennico. The Pride of Jennico was about Captain Basil Jennico and Princess Marie Ottilie, and it was set in the mid 1700s. It was based on a book written by Agnes and Egerton Castle." She gives Lee a little smile, "I think that is enough for now. Let's let other people talk now."

They spend the rest of their evening chatting about Lee and Susannah's childhood, the trouble that Patrick and Catherine would get into as young children, and what Hope Valley was like.

Susannah giggles to herself and looks over at Catherine, "I remember all the times that you and your brother would play hide and seek in the store. One of you would always manage to knock something over getting into your hiding spot. You two were always smart about it and would always choose new spots for hiding. I could never try to get ahead of you because I never knew where you would find to hide the next time you would play." Everyone laughs including Catherine.

Rosemary offers to help Susannah do the dishes while Catherine and the guys start a game of gin rummy. They play a few hands and then decide to call it a night. As they were going upstairs, Susannah asks, "What time do you have to be at the train station tomorrow?"

Lee pulls out his wallet to look at the tickets and answers, "The train leaves at noon."

The next morning, they all gather at the table for breakfast. Susannah makes French toast with strawberries and blueberries. Lee thanks them all for a wonderful stay, "Rosemary and I have enjoyed every minute of it, but we need to catch a train to Los Angeles." Everyone acknowledges two short days was not enough time. "We promise to come back to Bellingham later this year as long as you and Jake promise to come and bring the kids to Hope Valley." Susannah nods.

Catherine asks, "Where are you going next, Uncle Lee and Aunt Rosemary?"

"We will spend a few days in Los Angeles, and then, we will board a ship to Santiago, Chile! I've been promising to take Rosemary on our anniversary trip which originally was just to Los Angeles. We ended up giving our tickets to our friends for their honeymoon, so I wanted to make sure this would be a trip of a lifetime for both of us. Right before my accident, I surprised her with the cruise around the Americas. We have been through so much lately, I wanted to give her the world, well at much as we could see right now. We will board the ship in Los Angeles where it will take us to Santiago, Chile and then around the horn to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and then to New York City!" Rosemary smiles and takes his hand into hers.

With a look of shock on her face, Susannah asks, "Wow, that is some trip. How long will you be gone?"

Lee thinks about it and answers, "I would say at least two to three months."

Susannah and Catherine clean the kitchen while Lee and Rosemary finish packing up their things. They make their bed and tidy up the room as best as they can. Rosemary hands Lee their two suitcases, grabs her carpet bag, and they walk down the stairs with sad looks on their faces. Lee clears his throat and announces to everyone, "We better get this luggage in the car and head to the train station." The five of them reluctantly pile into the car for the twenty-minute ride. Jake helps them get their trunk and suitcases out of the car and gives them to the porter, who takes all the luggage and loads it into the luggage car. They hear the warning horns, so Lee and Rosemary tell each of them goodbye and how they hope to see them soon. They board the train and take their seats with mixed emotions. They are glad to continue on their trip, but neither one of them anticipated having such a good time with Susannah and her family. They are both glad they came and are looking forward to seeing them again later this year when they return from their trip.

Once they arrive in Los Angeles, Rosemary cannot contain herself. Since they only have a few days before they leave on their cruise, she makes plans for them every minute they will be there.

Their itinerary consists of the Gloria Swanson movie, Baseball Madness, at Talley's Electric Theatre, a Vaudeville show at the Pantages Theatre, taking a jaunt down Sunset Boulevard, dining in fine restaurants, watching for movie stars, and of course, the beach. She can't wait to wear her sunglasses on the streets of Los Angeles and look for movie stars. She is also so excited they will finally get to wear the bathing suits she designed for them. Lee doesn't seem to mind wearing what he called "his escaped convict" suit because his beautiful wife is at his side. Besides, all eyes are on her which he doesn't mind one bit. He knows she loves the attention almost as much as she loves him.

On their last night there, while at dinner, Lee apologizes that this part of the trip got cut short. "Lee, you don't need to apologize for anything. It was important to see your sister and meet her family. I know that meant a lot to you. Plus, we have so much to look forward to on the rest of our trip!"

"What would you like to do on your last morning here in Los Angeles, sweetheart?"

"Why don't you surprise me?"